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Latest reviews by AARON BLANKENSHIP
AARON BLANKENSHIP recommends this race
(2017)
"Amazing Views!"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
It has been two years since I did a half marathon, so I had to do a lot of training to get back up to a pace that I could keep up with for two hours. I was not sure how long or how many hills were in the course, so I did a lot of up hill training and I am grateful that I did.
The overall course is fairly easy for the first few miles along the coast and residential areas, but then you reach the hill. I attempted to continuing running the entire hill, however after noticing the people walking around me were going about the same pace as my run I decided to walk the remainder of the hill as well. That hill is a real killer! Luckily the breathtaking views and fantastic aid stations along way make the difficult hill not so bad. Then end of the course goes down a slightly steep cobble stone hill that can be a bit tricky before going back along the beach and then to the finish. Similar to the aid stations, there are plenty of drinks and snacks after the race as well as free beer! Fact: I do not drink alcohol, but it was a good incentive for a lot of runners.
The expo had a ton of great brands, Oofos, 2xu, and many more. There wasn't much in the way of swag. You pick up your shirt and get a bag but that's it for the swag.
Shoes:Mizuno Inspire
Headphones: Aftershockz
Shirt: Nike
Shorts: Asics
Socks: Asics
Sleeves: none
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AARON BLANKENSHIP recommends this race
(2017)
"Running in the Rain"
Overall
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Course Scenery
Expo Quality
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This race usually happens on the first weekend in January, but due to ice and snow the race had to be postponed until the third week of the month. This race is a lot of fun as the course seems fast at first, but quickly becomes a serious of rolling hills up until the end were it flattens out on a downhill curve. While the race was moved to avoid the ice and snow we got weeks before, we ended up in the middle of a heavy rain storm minutes after the races began. This made the course slightly dangerous as the course throughout the residential area became very slick. It didn't place in the top three this year, but I did improve my pace by 20 seconds from my race the prior week so I was very happy about that.
There is not much swag but the significantly improved on the t-shirt quality. In the past the shirts were long sleeve and heavy cotton; this year the shirt was short sleeve and very soft. After the race there are door prizes, medals for the top three in each age group, pastries, coffee, chili, and a lot more food. The volunteers are extremely helpful and friendly, they really make you feel apart of the church which is also noticeable as many people return to do this race year after year. I can't wait to do this race again next year!
AARON BLANKENSHIP recommends this race
(2017)
"First race of 2017"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Race Timing/Turnout: Last year this race was held on MLK day on Monday and the turnout was very low almost everyone works in Georgia on MLK day. This year they moved the race to the Saturday before and the turnout vastly improved! I love seeing a race become more successful each year and is one of the reasons that I like to do the same races each year. It was an unseasonably warm day in January, being around 57 degrees at 9 A.M. and beautiful weather.
Route: The route is great around the course and since it is on the campus it does not involve any roads so there is no traffic to worry about. I haven't run as much since it's been cold so this was a great race to get me back into it. The course is very forgiving and great for beginners with the main difficulty being the huge hill at the end. The hill was an obstacle for runners of all experience as no one expected it to be as hard as it was. This area is used for a race in the spring but that course involves going down the hill as opposed to up it. I managed to keep a good pace going up the hill as my personal trainer has done a lot to make me better at keeping pace on hills.
Swag and Shirt. One thing I did notice is that there were not any aid stations, this may be because there were only about 30 people at the race. I normally don't go to an aid station during a 5K but it was something I noticed. After the race there was plenty of food from Panera Bread and coffee to have. The race shirt is a nice tech long sleeve perfect for running in the winter as a base layer or post workout shirt. They also gave a bag with Band-Aids, aspirin, nature valley bar, and a bracelet to for the diabetes charity the money goes towards.
Overall: This is a great flat course with one major hill to not underestimate. It is a perfect race to start your running year off with especially in the warm winter we are having in Georgia. This was the first race I used my Aftershokz headphones. Now I've used these before while training but never for a race. They were perfect! no need to readjust at all during the race and the blue tooth reception and sound was great! I highly recommend these headphones for anyone that runs in a city or races with courses through a city.
AARON BLANKENSHIP recommends this race
(2016)
"Narrow and exciting 3.3 mile trail run"
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This was my second year participating in this trail run. The distance is actually 3.3 miles through a narrow, curving, and fast course. Much of the course was covered in fallen leaves making it rather difficult to plan your landing and footing. A few people around me slipped or stumbled and, since much of the course has step sides, it can be hazardous to slip off the course. The course itself is well marked and there are plenty of volunteers at the major curves with plenty of water and gel packs to grab to stay hydrated. A problem common in almost all trail is the difficulty to pass other runners. Passing is extremely difficult in this race if you don't get out front at the start. This year I started in the towards the middle and had difficulty steering around people since it's hard to know how wide the course will stay once you get to the wider sections. The hardest part for me was actually the gravel downhill at the end of the race, which can be hard to navigate as the runners in the duathlon are coming into the trail for the running portion of their race, which starts a few minutes after the trail race.
Last years I slide off the course and luckily another runner grabbed my arm and kept me from sliding down the slope. This year I slowed down more on the hairpin curves to make sure that didn't happen again. This is Mountain Goat Adventure's last even of the year, and while most trail runs take place in the summer, this race takes place in mid October which is the perfect weather for a trail run of any distance.
Trail runs always have the best t-shirts and this one is no different. Although you do not get much, you get a glass pint glass and a long sleeve dry fit shirt. This is great shirt with a great design, a lot of people put these on prior to the race as it was still fairly cool out. I will definitely be using it in the upcoming months while practicing. After the race there are plenty of snacks and drinks to replenish your energy after the hard race. The results are viewable right after the race as well. This is one of the best managed races I've been to. Everything is well managed, organized, and setup to let you focus on the race and not worry about anything else.
AARON BLANKENSHIP recommends this race
(2016)
"New 5K in Rome, Ga for 2016"
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Race Management
This year the Harbin race series replaced their annual Zombie 5K with the Harbin Hero Hustle. This race is a large improvement over the Zombie 5K. The Zombie 5K, while run, had some danger in it as the zombie volunteers went too far in the past and knocked runners over. This year the participation was a lot better with a large number of people dressing as their favorite super heroes and villains for the costume contest prior to the start of the 5K and fun walk. I have not done a race in Rome since May, so it was great to see that a lot more people are participating.
The course, while similar to the zombie 5K, now includes a large uphill mid mile two that was not expected. If you run often this will be a semi fast race for you with the exception of the hill. The course is well marked and wide with plenty of room for passing and one water station. This race was very well organized, you can instantly check your time and place after the race and the organizers let everyone know when the medal ceremony would be instead of the norm of waiting round for it to start.
Packet pickup is available the day of or the day before. You get a soft Gildan, a stress squeeze superhero, cozy, bandaids, and a bracelet for discounts downtown. The medals are handcrafted cut medal in the Harbin/superman logo.
This is a great race for beginners and runner alike set in a perfect temperature and forgiving course.